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Aug
8
Is the competition between the Sony Reader and Amazon Kindle ereader devices a repeat of the competition between the Sony Walkman and the Apple iPod? That’s the position staked out by Financial Times columnist John Gapper.
Noting that Apple managed to integrate the iTunes store, and device hardware and software better than Sony, the article says that in the sphere of ebook reading devices Sony “has just made the same mistake all over again. It has squandered an early lead in a new field because another company was better not just at inventing an electronic device but also at linking it to a wireless network and making it easy for consumers to use.” Amazon, the FT article says, “has swept past Sony with the Kindle, a rival e-book reader that is showing every sign of becoming the iPod of this nascent market.”
Sony was first on the ebook scene with its Reader, the article adds, but a year later Amazon launched the Kindle, with links to the Amazon online store via a wireless 3G network. There are indications that the Sony Reader may also incorporate wireless connectivity, but “[t]he danger for Sony is that it is already too late. Amazon has grabbed the market-leading position from Sony and established a stronger brand, which is what happened with the iPod and the Walkman.”
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